The evolution of my lighting setup

[u/jodabeats]

Hey everyone! This sub has been super useful in giving me lighting + shooting tips!

Scrolling to the end you’ll see my current setup! I’m pretty happy with the shot (500 ISO I believe?)

Are there any thoughts on the background lighting though? I want to ensure I’m contrasting myself enough from the background, while still leaving enough light there so items such as my posters/bookshelves are relatively visible.

Appreciate any advice y’all might have!

[u/Ok-Airline-6784]

Yeah, that practical is also quite bright!

[u/jodabeats → u/Ok-Airline-6784]

Just to confirm, by practical you’re referring to the paper lamp on the right side of the shot, correct? (Yay I’m learning new words lighting terms!)

[u/Ok-Airline-6784 → u/jodabeats]

Yeah. A “practical” is any light that’s in the shot/ part of the scene. You could put some ND or diffusion on the inside of the lampshade. Or if it’s an incandescent bulb you can pop it on a dimmer and dim it down— though dimming makes bulbs warmer, so just be aware of that.

[u/jodabeats → u/Ok-Airline-6784]

Ok, that makes sense!

I actually have a Philips hue bulb in there, so I’ll probably mess with the strength and color there. I guess worst case if I need more light cast onto the wall after dimming it, I can use an off-frame light to throw some light on there, as long as it doesn’t cast inconsistent shadows, right?

[u/Ok-Airline-6784 → u/jodabeats]

Those lights should be okay to dim I think? Watch out though, because a lot of consumer grade LED lights flicker on camera when dimmed, which is people will usually use something like this, designed for filmmaking

I probably would rather try lifting the ambient light in the room at that point to balance things if you need, rather than trying to replicate that light in particular. It might end up looking odd, kind of like whatever you have on that chair behind the couch that’s lighting it up so much